Do you look forward to the Super Bowl, not for the football, but for the opportunity to dissect Madison Avenue’s finest work? When you get a new magazine, do you first check out all the advertisements before reading the stories? It’s okay to admit if you do. Your love for advertising would be a perfect fit at an advertising agency.

While ad agency jobs are competitive, there are always going to be positions open for talented, hard-working individuals willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Consider the following creative ad agency positions and decide which would be best for you to pursue:

Art director

The art director is in charge of the creative side of advertising. This is the “big picture” person who gives direction to advertising campaigns. The art director is unique in that, while his position is highly creative, he still works in management and is responsible for getting production out of his department.

Job challenges: One of the toughest aspects of an art director’s job is to maintain the spirit of a campaign as the project passes through the hands of a variety of parties, all with different interests. To accomplish this, the art director must be a good negotiator and a solid leader.

Career tips: The dream job of many creative types is art director. If you aspire to one day become a famous art director, you should start by enrolling in an advertising degree program. In addition, you should immerse yourself in the industry as much as possible. Study agencies’ latest work, subscribe to industry journals and read marketing blogs. Also remember to be patient, since this position takes many years to work up to.

Copywriter

A copywriter creates the copy for advertising in media ranging from print ads to radio spots to television commercials to websites. The copywriter works with both the art director and the creative department to not only come up with creative concepts, but also turn those concepts into headlines and prose that accomplish the campaign’s goal.

Job challenges: Because copywriters face tight deadlines on a number of projects throughout the day, they can easily start to lose their creativity and grammatical accuracy. Since these are two of the most crucial skills for a copywriter to possess, copywriters must fight to stay sharp every day.

Career tips: If you’d like to pursue a career as a copywriter, consider an advertising degree program that allows you to develop your creativity and writing skills. You should also consider learning how to write with Internet search engines in mind, since Internet marketing has become one of the fastest-growing segments of the advertising industry.

Designer

Designers create and arrange all the graphic elements used in an advertisement. Different designers work with different elements; for example, graphic designers generally lay out print ads, Web designers create websites, and illustrators, photographers and animators create original content to be used in a variety of media.

Job challenges: Like copywriters, designers need to stay sharp even after working on a number of similar projects in a row. They also need to stay up to date on constantly changing industry software.

Career tips: If you’re new to design, you need to first get a solid foundation in the principles of art and design before taking on sophisticated programs like Adobe Photoshop or Autodesk Maya. Too many amateurs learn software before they learn art. As a result, they produce work that is technologically impressive, yet fundamentally flawed. The best way to avoid this knowledge gap is to pursue a degree in visual communications. Visual communication degrees offer concentrations in advertising design, multimedia and web design and more to ensure that you acquire the comprehensive knowledge of art and technology needed to become a successful designer.

Media planner

While the creative team is the part of the ad agency that actually creates advertising messages, the media planner’s job is to connect those messages with the right people. This involves everything from purchasing television time slots to analyzing Web traffic data to researching niche magazines. A media planner’s ultimate goal is to get the best return on the advertising investments made by his agency’s clients.

Job challenges: Media planners must be acutely aware of who their target market is and what they are doing. Because target markets can be fickle, media planners must have the judgment to make tough decisions quickly.

Career tips: Media planning is more numbers-focused than many ad agency positions, so you should consider business classes in addition to your advertising training. Statistics classes are also helpful since critical thinking skills are imperative.

Information in this article was provided by IADT – San Antonio. Contact IADT – San Antonio today if you’re interested in developing marketable knowledge and career-relevant skills with an industry-current degree program. (IADT – San Antonio does not guarantee employment or salary.)